Dispatch from Hamilton Ontario
In Vancouver, spring is in the air with the trees in full bloom and the start of my kids school break. It was hard to leave the city with the sun shining. While it may be spring in Vancouver it definitely is still winter in Hamilton Ontario, where I am here to visit my family. We are so spoiled in Vancouver with how beautiful our late winter weather is. Here in Hamilton it is bleak, no leaves on the trees and still a little snow on the ground that is contaminated with car exhaust and road grit.
Still, the sun is shining and the there is crispness in the air and what could be wrong with that? Hamilton is a maze of one-way streets. James St, which runs north south, officially divides the city east-west and the key east-west streets are Main St. going east and King St. going west. I have a mental model of Hamilton imprinted on my brain from all of the pizzas I delivered here. Unofficially the city is The City is bisected by the Queen Elisabeth hwy, which is the main route to Toronto.
Last night we went for a little walk to get a bite to eat. The one-way streets really make the city oriented towards cars. The sidewalks feel narrow and one is quite conscious of how close the cars are and that you need to pay attention when crossing the streets. Friday night in the Hammer and the streets were deserted. While walking I could not help but notice how many empty stores and apartment buildings have boarded up windows on King St.
Big news from the Hammer, there is a now a dedicated bike path on the Main street bridge and if you know Hamilton this is a big deal. I could just image the public debate on that one (imagine the Burrard Bridge magnified 10-fold). Here in Hamilton folks are way more dedicated to their cars and the distance between things makes walking a much less appealing choice.
Anyways, I will take some photos while I am here of the best and the worst of the Hammer. I saw some pretty cool pedestrian signals last night. Guess what? I read in the Hamilton Spectator that The Pam Am Games are coming and the Mayor, Fred Eisenberger, is quoted as saying that the games are going “transform” Hamilton. The article highlights the infrastructure investment that occurred in Vancouver and how these amenities will come to Hamilton. It is interesting to read how these mega-events are sold to the general public.Hamilton Spectator article